April Unemployment Rate Drops, But What About Black Women?

The unemployment rate dipped to 5.4 percent in April, with the U.S. adding 223,000 jobs, according to the monthly jobs report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is the lowest rate since May 2008, six months into the Great Recession, reports the Huffington Post.

The solid gains in the job market suggests that the economy may be recovering after a rather sluggish start to the year.

But while the unemployment rate for the country overall has made great improvements, African Americans have historically always trailed behind--and in April that trend was no different.

The unemployment rate in April for African-Americans was 9.6 percent. While poor, it’s an improvement from the 10.1 percent in March. Black women fared better with 8.8 percent in April, down from 9.2 percent the month prior.

Unfortunately the American job growth isn’t exactly boosting paychecks. Average hourly wages rose just 3 cents in April to $24.87. Wages have risen 2.2 percent in the past 12 months, about the same modest year-over-year increase as in the past six years, reports HuffPost.